I loved this as a kid and enjoyed revisiting it. It's competent and coherently written. Very accessible to the developing reader and perfect for readiI loved this as a kid and enjoyed revisiting it. It's competent and coherently written. Very accessible to the developing reader and perfect for reading out loud. Chapter 13 in particular is very exciting......more

I have a lot of love for Lorna Hill. Yep the later ones in the series get a bit pedestrian, and yes the likelihood of one remote North-Eastern town prI have a lot of love for Lorna Hill. Yep the later ones in the series get a bit pedestrian, and yes the likelihood of one remote North-Eastern town producing a kazillion prima ballerinas does get a little tenuous. But this is the first in the series and possesses a fresh vivacious charm of its own. Veronica is a brilliant heroine; tempestuous, charismatic and vividly drawn.

A little sad but I just didn't click with this. I've read it a couple of times now, always hoping that it'll happen but it never has. It's competent aA little sad but I just didn't click with this. I've read it a couple of times now, always hoping that it'll happen but it never has. It's competent and solidly written but nobody really gets into gear save the mother and there's not enough of her for me. Oh well. ...more

I love the Chalet School. It's my big book crush of my life. Something about it is just so perfect and undying to me. This is one of the best books -I love the Chalet School. It's my big book crush of my life. Something about it is just so perfect and undying to me. This is one of the best books - and it's worth trying to hunt out an unabridged version if you can. Even if it's just to read the full scene of the Yorkshire man hitting on Madge in the train, it's worth it for that. ...more

Have I told you how much I love Pride? I fell in love with Brian K Vaughan after discovering Runaways (which I blogged about here) and first discovereHave I told you how much I love Pride? I fell in love with Brian K Vaughan after discovering Runaways (which I blogged about here) and first discovered Pride on a day when the rains opened and I sheltered in a library in Maidenhead.

And I discovered a very, very good book that moved me to tears and laughter and heartbreak all in one sitting.

The eponymous Pride of Baghdad (oh there are levels we can read that title at, so many levels) is Zill, lion of the Baghdad Zoo, and his lionesses Safa and Noor and her cub Ali. Their life changes forever when the sky erupts with bombs and naturally, inevitably, some of them fall on the zoo and free the animals inside. We follow the Pride on their exploration of Baghdad, through good times and the bad, through to a, well, a climax of intense proportions set up against the blood red evening sky.

This book is beautiful, and heartfelt, and something so very special. The artwork (Niko Henrichon, playing a blinder) is dynamic, bold and yet curiously lyrical all at the same time. Some of the big splash pages are full of poetic staging set against the most destructive of backgrounds. There's a lot going on here and it's worthwhile taking a moment or two to let the images sink in.

Naturally there's an element of commentary on the nature of war and the invasion of Iraq but it's one that I felt didn't overshadow the book. The ending, which I won't spoil here, is achingly painful and poignant to read and one that will - and should incite discussion. The main narrative itself has some very hard moments which are painful - and upsetting to read. There's an implication of repeated rape at one point (over a one page spread) and the eventual antagonist in the book is a defiantly terrifying character. It's vital to remember that a vast part of this book is allegorical in nature and can be read on so many levels.

I read this, whilst the rain pounded down outside in one of those viciously emphatic downpours that the UK is prone too, and I didn't move for the entire afternoon. This book held me.

I love Michael Morpurgo. He writes in a very stark, deceptively simple manner which belies the skill behind his work. The ending of this left me feeliI love Michael Morpurgo. He writes in a very stark, deceptively simple manner which belies the skill behind his work. The ending of this left me feeling physically winded. Amazing writer. This is no exception. ...more

Spectacularly readable and accessible, I love this book and it's defined a lot of my attitude towards character theory. Worth hunting out - and hanginSpectacularly readable and accessible, I love this book and it's defined a lot of my attitude towards character theory. Worth hunting out - and hanging on to. ...more

I love this. Ballet's not something I'm up on in the slightest (I come from a strictly Noel Streatfield balletomane perspective) but this is a fascinaI love this. Ballet's not something I'm up on in the slightest (I come from a strictly Noel Streatfield balletomane perspective) but this is a fascinating, if at times esoteric, look at ballet. It's also distinctly readable (albeit hefty!). ...more

Not the best for me. Needed a wealth of editing and frankly I could pass on some of the multitudinous subplots going on. I'm still with this series foNot the best for me. Needed a wealth of editing and frankly I could pass on some of the multitudinous subplots going on. I'm still with this series for completion purposes but I've lost the sheer gleeful joy that came when I read the first few. ...more

Noel Streatfield had a handle on what made "working" children tick. Her sympathetic portrayal of characters who take to the stage, the circus, the iceNoel Streatfield had a handle on what made "working" children tick. Her sympathetic portrayal of characters who take to the stage, the circus, the ice-rink, is consistently smart and realistic. Circus Shoes is no exception. Peter and his rather splendidly named sister Santa face an uncertain future following certain events and as a result of this, they quite literally run away to the circus. What's more realistic for me and appealing in this story is Peter. Santa's ultimate fate is somewhat inevitable and a little too easy (which knocked a star off for me) but I've got a soft spot for the awkward, irascible, bad tempered brilliantly drawn adolescent that is Peter. ...more

Picture books, regardless of reader-age, are able to give pleasure to pretty much everybody. As they're often read by adults to children, there's a suPicture books, regardless of reader-age, are able to give pleasure to pretty much everybody. As they're often read by adults to children, there's a subtle acknowledgement of this in the text and few small side-winks to the adult inside them. They appeal to everybody because they have to.

And this is just gorgeous. I couldn't get enough of it. The artwork is very very lovely. There's a double page spread involving a sandbox that is laugh out loud brilliant. I can't wait to share this with the younger members of my family. ...more

I seem to be finding a lot of books these days with bereavement as their central issue. Ice Lolly is the story of L**spoiler alert** Beware, spoilers.

I seem to be finding a lot of books these days with bereavement as their central issue. Ice Lolly is the story of Laurel and told primarily in the first person. It was a curiously unsatisfying book for me because the language, whilst realistic at times, seems to slide in and out of character. It's almost a modern fairytale in some points (what with the wicked stepmother, the good fairy, the animal best friend) and for this it lost a lot of impact for me as I tend to seek the realism in titles of this nature. I enjoyed the imagery of Lolly blocking herself up in an igloo but this really wasn't explored enough for my liking.

On another issue, I had some issues with the cover quote - "Funny, funky,feisty - and fantastic reads" This obviously relates to more than one book, what with being plural and all, and gave me a little concern about the validity of the content.

However I have very much enjoyed some of Jean Ure's other books and would reccomend seeking out some of these as they really are worth a read. It's just that Ice Lolly promised more than it delivered for me. ...more

The protagonist, Nat Field, is a young actor who has come over to play at the Globe with his company. Somehow he goes to bed feelingOh this is good.

The protagonist, Nat Field, is a young actor who has come over to play at the Globe with his company. Somehow he goes to bed feeling ill and then wakes up in Shakespearean England. With Shakespeare. The rest of the novel is concerned with his adventures in this time period and also what happens when he returns to his 'normal' life.

And like I said, it's very very good. There's a heartrending moment when Nat almost falls in love with Shakespeare and Cooper conveys this hero worship with kindness and a light, nonjudgemental touch. There's a lot of warmth throughout the text, Nat and his love of his work, and Cooper and her patent love for Shakespeare.

The ending is excellent, genuinely so, but I can see how it may prove divisive. It's admittedly stagey but that reflects the topic of the book quite well so I felt it fitted. This is the only part where it lost a mark for me.

One of my pet hates with time-travel or historic books is that the side detail overwhelms the central thread of the story. Didn't happen here. What detail there was was very seamless and nicely interwoven. Good work all round and well worth a read.

**spoiler alert** Full disclosure part one - I received an advance copy of this from the publisher.

Full disclosure part two - It's really rather good.**spoiler alert** Full disclosure part one - I received an advance copy of this from the publisher.

Full disclosure part two - It's really rather good.

An Act of Love tells the story of two childhood friends forced down separate ideological paths - one into the army and the other into extremism.

It's a solid book, highly readable with a ton of detail that doesn't detract from the core content. It's also one of the few books that deals with the issue of terrorism - an issue which is rarely addressed in children's literature.

What Gibbons manages to do here is portray the rounded whole and the genuine heartbreak that affects everybody involved in terrorism. The impact of a choice is shown upon the character and their surroundings - their families, friends and loved ones. And these choices, when they're made, when they bend and break the character in question, they're not easy choices. They're heart-wrenching to read and yet bitterly inevitable.

It's not an easy read but children's literature doesn't have to be. What it has to do is have an impact and an affect upon the reader. An Act of Love will create more questions than it solves - a perhaps inevitable result of the topic - but these are questions that need to be asked. And somebody needs to ask them. ...more

The day I discover a new Micheal Morpurgo is a very happy day. He's one of the authors who constantly amaze and inspire me.

Running Wild is the storyThe day I discover a new Micheal Morpurgo is a very happy day. He's one of the authors who constantly amaze and inspire me.

Running Wild is the story of Will, caught up in terrifying events when a tsunami hits the village he and his mother have been staying. Will, who was having an elephant ride at the time, survives only because the elephant - Oona - senses the imminent tsunami and bolts into the forest. This is the story of how he survives.

Will is a lovely character though I did feel he came across distinctly older than he was meant to be at times. I felt there were a good few moments when we lost Will's voice amidst the general narrative. However what I did believe was Will's love for Oona and how the two of them build a relationship together that allows them to survive against the odds.

And that's something Morpurgo is never afraid to do - write about love and how it can sustain us through the worst of times. Will manages to build himself a family in the forest, and through supporting that family - and loving them - he learns how to deal with his own immense loss.

Running Wild is a little heavy handed at times and slides somewhat lazily into an easy denouement. I won't deny that the ending has a visceral emotional impact but what I will say is that the getting there suddenly felt very awkward and frankly left me skipping a few pages.

I genuinely enjoyed this book but I don't think it's amongst his best. Skip back to Waiting For Anya if you want to read one of his greatest. ...more

**spoiler alert** My love for school stories is fairly blatant. I'm a sucker for the Chalet School and have spent many happy hours at St Clares and Ma**spoiler alert** My love for school stories is fairly blatant. I'm a sucker for the Chalet School and have spent many happy hours at St Clares and Malory Towers. I even bought Wild Child on dvd just so I could check out how that boarding school compared. So I was really happy to pick up Beswitched as it seemed to combine a lot of my loves - plus I'd heard a lot of positive things about in on various mailing lists.

Flora Fox, modern schoolgirl, is caught in a magic spell on the way to her lovely modern shiny boarding school. It pulls her back in time to the more prosaic surroundings of St Winifred's - 1930s boarding school.

Beswitched is a really charming little book. I admit I was pretty firmly predisposed towards loving it because of my school story obsession but I did enjoy it. Unfortunately it was over a little too swift! Flora's growth as a character is believable and I really liked how she was slowly but inevitably drawn into loving her 1930s experience as this sort of paralleled my own reason for loving this genre of books.

There were a few excellent moments where Flora forgets that she has great knowledge of the future. And, to echo Uncle Ben, with great knowledge comes great responsibility. This is something that Flora particularly comes to understand as she realises that World War Two is just around the corner...

The supporting cast is a little bit drawn on cliche but again that's part of the genre that Saunders was working with. School stories do tend to draw the characters a little sketchily (primarily because they are usually so many of them!) so when we do get character development - such as the sub-plot between Flora and Consuela - these moments are much appreciated.

I felt that perhaps it wasn't quite what I was expecting as a novel but I appreciate that that's because I'm soaked in this genre. I also have to admit that the presence of the fox on the front cover totally passed me by until I started to write this review (Flora FOX .. get it? Took me a while...).

Ultimately a very diverting and pleasant read. I don't imagine I'll be going back to it though and that's why it's a 4/5 stars for me. It missed that *magic* that draws me back. ...more

Light tells the story of a young boy who, through wince-worthy coincidence, finds himself caught up in a strange echo of events from World War Two.

YoLight tells the story of a young boy who, through wince-worthy coincidence, finds himself caught up in a strange echo of events from World War Two.

You can probably guess from that sentence alone, I didn't get on this this book. It's not say that I demand realism from fiction. Far from it. If something is well-written, and exciting, I don't care if the protagonist is blatantly manipulated into position. God, I forgive anything from Elinor M. Brent-Dyer and she is the QUEEN of coincidence. But Light just felt like it was written by numbers.

There was some interest here in the shift of perspective and narrative voices to provide a wider point of view upon events. But that interest was brief, and particularly negated when it came to the events of the final few pages. I'll not spoil them here but when you have your lead protagonist narrating in a flashback structure, you pretty much blunt any suspense over their narrative journey. Throw them into a life-threatening situation? Doesn't matter, cos you know they're narrating the book so they survived.

Light was well written in parts but these problems of structure and plot contrivances managed to detract from what could have been a much greater whole. ...more

Charlotte, new student at a boarding school, has one of those days we've all had when we're new somewhere. Exhausted, nervy, confused, she goes to bedCharlotte, new student at a boarding school, has one of those days we've all had when we're new somewhere. Exhausted, nervy, confused, she goes to bed and wakes up in the same school forty years earlier. Turns out she's somehow swapped places with a schoolgirl of that time - Clare - and somehow they keep shifting places ...

I'm rubbish at writing synopses so I apologise for the fact that the above sounds distinctly bald. Charlotte Sometimes really isn't. It reminded me of Adele Geras' Egerton Hall trilogy and also of Phillipa Pearce's Tom's Midnight Garden. There's a very lyrical dreamlike quality to all of these texts who deal, in some way or another, with issues of self and identity. Growing up. Becoming who you're meant to be. Finding out how you become an individual.

Sometimes children's literature is missold in a way. It's presented as children's literature but in reality it deals with issues that cross age, sex and arbitary reading divisions. I know that there are depths of content and meaning that I'm going to have to go back to Charlotte Sometimes for. I could feel them at the edge of my reading and I love that - that tangible sense of a text having more than what I'm currently reading.

Charlotte Sometimes is a book I'm astounded I've never come across before. It's dreamy, elegant and fog-bound in mystery. Sometimes when you read things, you put the book down and step away and drop it out of your head immediately. I don't think this will be happening soon with this one. ...more

I found this a really charming little book and genuinely enjoyed reading it.

The story of Dewey the Library cat, kitten rescued from a freezing alleyI found this a really charming little book and genuinely enjoyed reading it.

The story of Dewey the Library cat, kitten rescued from a freezing alley and given home in a public library, has been adapted specifically for younger readers. As such it's a light and lovely read and the language used is very accessible and clear.

Although the obvious happens at the end (cute-cat-death alert people, be prepared), I still can imagine this being shared well between adult and child.

It's also one of the most effective pieces of #savelibraries propaganda I've read. Really lovely.

Meet Marie Claire and Robert DeBillier. Aka Bob and his sister - The Rat. Following a tragic family incident, the two of them decide to seek out theirMeet Marie Claire and Robert DeBillier. Aka Bob and his sister - The Rat. Following a tragic family incident, the two of them decide to seek out their long-lost Uncle who lives in New York. Trouble is - these kids currently live in Winnipeg. Cue one of the most heart-breakingly brilliant roadtrips I've ever read about.

I can't believe how good this book was. It's extraordinary. Hughes has the ability to construct character so well through his use of language; The Rat is one of those gloriously eccentric other-wordly creatures that you meet quite often in books. And you do meet them quite often, but you never meet them done as well as this. The Rat is a wise-cracking, bleeping brilliant creation, a ball of imagination and courage wrapped up in the guise of a ten year old girl. She's amazing. You can't help but root for her and Bob.

The story as a whole is full of some lovely seditious comments on humanity. It's refreshing to see these presented as offhand comments rather than the blunt moralising that some "issue" books can slide into. I actually really enjoyed how the story had a bit of respect for the nous of the reader. Kids are smart creatures and sometimes authors forget this.

And then there's the ending. Hughes presents a very quiet, very subtle ending but it packs a stunning emotional punch. The movement towards this heart-breakingly brilliant ending is one that practically defines the term "page-turner".

Books like that one beginning with a T and the interminable recurrence of "kids with powers" has kind of put me off YA Fantasy recently. To be honestBooks like that one beginning with a T and the interminable recurrence of "kids with powers" has kind of put me off YA Fantasy recently. To be honest there's only so much you can do with the format and a lot of it has been done better elsewhere.

But Hunting Lila actually sort of, just a little bit, managed to bring me back into the fold. There's a curiously solid feel to this book; written by debut author Sarah Alderson (who now, a quick Google reveals, lives in Bali so I think I hate her a little bit :) )

Lila is a smart, clever creation. She's not one-dimensional but she's full of love, bravery, passion and intelligence. I really enjoyed being able to take her journey with her. Her emotions are drawn well - and realistically - and thank god she's not just a damsel in distress.

Alderson's writing style is competent and pacy. It's very swift and you rocket along with Lila's journey, despite her not actually finding out 'the truth' until a good few pages in. I did lose track sometimes of who was where and what was going on but whenever this happened I managed to pick it up again fairly quickly. This was the main reason it lost a star for me. I'd have liked a bit more explicit guidance during these moments.

There are several key twists in the narrative that aren't signposted at all (which is good). The big one left me genuinely surprised and I have to admit I like what could happen there.

And I'll definitely keep an eye out for the sequel. Which, to be honest, is a total rarity for me and this genre.

Note: I won a copy of this directly from the Publisher via a competition on Twitter.

**spoiler alert** Birthmarked tells the story of young midwife Gaia Stone who helps deliver babies to the Enclave - a walled, er, enclave who brings u**spoiler alert** Birthmarked tells the story of young midwife Gaia Stone who helps deliver babies to the Enclave - a walled, er, enclave who brings up the children inside of the, god this is going to kill me, Enclave and forget their previous lives in the process. They become privileged citizens, able to live in a luxury denied to those outside the, er, *collapses* , Enclave.

I just didn't get on with this. I actually enjoy a good dystopian. The Hunger Games was something quite excellent and I'll be one of the first in line to see the film. But oh, Birthmarked made me lose the will to live a little bit.

Let's start with the cover. It looks amazing on the little image here. But in reality it's just so busy, you lose the title and you lose the author. Kind of important. And the text, whilst stylistically interesting and certainly different, isn't the title. It's just recycling the blurb. And if you can make the blurb that pithy that it fits into two sentences on the front, then why on earth do you have two incredibly dense paragraphs on the back?

The story itself opens well. Very well. There's a dark, and dank feeling to it that pervades the pages with a sense of slow horror. The birth scenes are handled excellently and there's a real sensation of being on the edge of some central terrifying moments.

But then that's about it. It slides very heavily into standard dystopian tropes and does that with all the subtlety of a kid hyped up on chocolate.

Gaia is actually sort of annoying. She just reacts to things. I have a rule of thumb, if I can't figure out what her voice is - like what she'd say to something in a conversation - then I'm struggling. And I couldn't. She's surprisingly anodyne. I'd be depressed if my niece found her inspirational.

The construction of the world jarred with me as well. Lexically, there were quite a few moments which just made me go "Oh what?":-

1. Gaia referring to her mother as 'mom'. Just seemed very much out of place. 2. The Tvaltar. Right. Really. I get it. 3. Gaia and (POTENTIAL SPOILER, DON'T DO IT, OKAY YOU ASKED FOR IT) Maya. Really? Really???

I also don't know if it's the edition I read but there were a few copy errors which jarred. These were mainly towards the end of the book.

And also - please can somebody show me a dystopian YA where the men are the nurses and the women are the soldiers? I am sick of gender sterotypes being one of the few things that survive into the future.

Note: I won a copy of this directly from the Publisher via a competition on Twitter....more

I finished this and I realised that I don't ever remember reading a bad book from KM Peyton. I genuinely feel that she is one of the most undersung auI finished this and I realised that I don't ever remember reading a bad book from KM Peyton. I genuinely feel that she is one of the most undersung authors in the world of children's literature.

Stylistically reminiscent of Antonia Forest (with the precision of language both authors use) and the Pullein-Thompson sisters (if they'd written about ponies and then about falling in mad passionate love with the stableboy), KM Peyton is constantly outstanding. And Dear Fred is no exception.

Based initially around Laura's lust-filled obsession for champion jockey Fred Archer and set in late nineteenth century Newmarket, this novel features horses, love and a healthy dollop of magic.

Peyton writes emotion so well. The confusing, dominating, soul-consuming nature of a first crush and then the mad emotional maelstrom / utter banality of love. She pitches it so beautifully; understanding that sometimes this emotion is everything and then at other times, it's nothing. She's one of the few writers who can really handle love and present it 'warts and all' without wishing to romanticise the experience. Relationships like Laura and Tiger or Ruth and Pennington (Beethoven Medal) are real. Vivid. Horrible, Mad. Dull. Banal. Beautiful. Real.

What I also love about KM Peyton is her ability to give depth to the adults in her series. They're not sidekicks. They're also not automatically right because they're adults. They mess up equally if not more than the apparantly juvenile protagonists.

KM Peyton makes you feel the world she creates. Reading her books is always a transformative experience. And I love them. I really really love them. ...more